


Propagating

by foolhearty



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Drabble, Fluff, Gardens & Gardening, Gen, Green Thumb Prompto, M/M, Plants, Pre-Relationship, Succulents, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-16
Updated: 2018-03-16
Packaged: 2019-03-31 23:29:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13985598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foolhearty/pseuds/foolhearty
Summary: “The chopped bits grow still?” Noct sounds distrustful. “You’re just giving Gladio dead plants, dude.”“No, dude. It’s called propagating. Roots will grow from the leaves or even a whole stem if you get a clean enough cut. A whole new plant can grow out of just one little leaf if you’re patient enough.”





	Propagating

**Author's Note:**

> Listen I spent the morning repotting some of my succulents and wanted to write something short and sweet, so here's This.

“Dude, what are you doing to your plants?”

Prompto stops mid-snip, raising a brow over his shoulder at Noct; up to this point, he’s been a silent onlooker, more content to watch yet another Netflix true crime series while Prompto busies himself over one of his older succulent planters. He’d made this one about a year ago out of an old wooden bowl his mom had brought from her home in Galahd. He’d made it for her and his dad for their anniversary and had felt a warm tingle all over when she cried over how nice she thought it was. But, after a year of growth, it’s looking a bit shabby. The string of pearls and donkey’s tail sedum he’d hung decoratively over the sides are  _ massive _ now and hang in the way of the shelf he’d plopped the planter on. 

Noct has caught him in the middle of one of his regular trimming and fluffing days. Not just for this planter, but for a few of the other plants he’s got stashed around his apartment. 

“You’re going all  _ Off With Their Heads _ on them. Why are you chopping them up?”

Prom smiles. Noct isn’t a plant dude, which is arguably fine but something Prompto thinks is tragic. Noct has an amazing balcony off his living room that looks over the city. Prom would love to see it full of greenery.

“I’m just taking some cuttings and cleaning them up a bit. They’re growing kinda wild.” He pauses, going back to work while he speaks further. “And Gladio mentioned wanting to try his hand at growing some succulents of his own. I was gonna give him a fairy garden sometime as a gift, but I figured I could give him some cuttings too if he wants to try really growing them from scratch and potting them himself when they take root.”

“The chopped bits grow still?” Noct sounds distrustful. “You’re just giving Gladio dead plants, dude.”

“No, dude. It’s called  _ propagating _ . Roots will grow from the leaves or even a whole stem if you get a clean enough cut. A whole new plant can grow out of just one little leaf if you’re patient enough.”

Noct gives him a dubious look, before standing and striding over to his side. He eyes the planter for a moment. “...you were gonna make something like this for Gladio?”

Prompto shrugs. “Something similar, probably. But I’ll probably use a normal big pot for it. This one was kind of... personal. And an experiment. And Gladio’s is gonna have some cute decorations in it, too! I’ve got some moss and some nice rocks I wanna use for it. And maybe some dumb little decorations... I was thinking about putting a little scene in the center, making it look like a little cottage with a swing in the yard. So it’d look like a little house surrounded by a forest of pretty succulents.”

Noct gets a perplexing look on his face, listening to Prompto’s excitement. 

“For Gladio, though?” He reiterates, poking through some of the cuttings Prompto has already finished and set aside. He picks one up and looks at it, then looks guilty when the fine white powdery substance smears away from the leaves where he’s touched. He sits it back down and doesn’t pick anymore up, after that. 

“Yeah. I made Iggy one last Spring! His had some cacti in it too, though. It wasn’t much of a scene, just something packed full of color.”

Noct is quiet, then he hunches up his shoulders and marches back towards the couch. “Well, whatever dude. Just thought you were butchering your kids or whatever.”

Prompto frowns as he plucks a leaf off another plant, replaying the conversation in his mind as Noct turns up the volume on the TV. He squints over his haphazard pile of cuttings and stems, noting the blotchy fingerprint on a cutting of echeveria he’d set aside. Echeveria are nice because some can get wild and fantastic colors, but they’ve all got pretty white or light grey films that make them look dreamy and soft. The film wipes away when they’re touched, though, making the leaves look plasticy and shiny. 

He sets his scissors down and bites at his bottom lip, before puffing out a huff of air and turning to face the couch. “Do you want one, dude?” He asks over the sound of the TV, brow raised once more. He sudden perks up, sounding excited. “Dude! You drove here right? Or did Iggy drive you? Either way. Dude the garden center I go to is still open for another couple hours. Let’s drive out there and I’ll let you pick out stuff you think looks cool!”

Noct’s head snaps back and he looks  _ damn embarrassed  _ and caught red handed in the middle of trying to hide his feelings. He should know better than to try and mask what he’s got on his mind, at this point. Prom knows Noct better than he knows the backs of his own hands. 

“Really?”

“Dude! I thought you thought this was all lame. I can totally make you one. Seriously. Lets go to the garden center. It’s like, a twenty minute drive tops. Lets go!”

“Y- Yeah. Sure. Yeah.” Noct is already climbing to his feet and fumbling through his pockets for his keys. “Let’s go.”

**Author's Note:**

> Fine me on my [writing tumblr](https://foolhearty.tumblr.com/) or my [writing twitter](https://twitter.com/_foolhearty). Would love to chat or answer any questions! Also on my twitter I share pics of my plant kids. That's my bribe for the day!


End file.
